that,ve an administration day in and day out, talks about attacking the establishment and deconstructing the establishment. he is about as establishment as you can in vision. why didn't the president decided to go with someone who so clearly embodies -- why did it the president -- why did the president decided to go with someone who so clearly embodies the establishment rather than some of it comes from the outside like him? ; -- all, i wouldt of remember what he said that judge gorsuch was out of central casting. in that respect, you could say that neil gorsuch is part of the establishment, but in other respects he is not. first of all, he is a westerner. it is been a long time since we have had a justice from the west. ed for one oflerk them. as you get to know him, there is that sort of love for freedom and accountability and transparency in government that westerners often exhibit. that is a little bit different from the northeast, white shoe law firm mentality. that neil gorsuch is a lawyer's lawyer in many ways. he is also a little scrappy, too. ofwas there at the beginning a very

oupoceffer sris, d puesisthr ve every day, and theare entitled to an administration that has their back. [applause] pres. trump: the first step in restoring public safety is affirming our confidence in the men and women charged with upholding our laws. and i'm going to add justices, judges in that category. and i am very proud to have picked judge gorsuch, who i think is going to be an outstanding member of the supreme court, outstanding. [applause] pres. trump: so i would like to begin my remarks with a declaration issued to all of you and delivered to every member of the law enforcement community all across the united states. my message today is that you have a true, true friend in the white house. you have. [applause] pres. trump: i stand with you, i support our police, i support our sheriffs, and we support the men and women of law enforcement. [applause] pres. trump: right now, many communities in america are facing a public safety crisis. murders in 2015 experienced their largest single-year increase in nearly half a century. in 2016, murders in large cities continued to climb by

sass,ve folks like ben's who has been an outspoken critic of the administration and on trade and the more traditional conservative issues. that is someone who is worth paying close attention to in the months ahead. "his executive orders are popular, including with working-class voters, and they fear alienating -- host: coalitions of convenience. your article. that doesn't mean fights over every member of the president's cabinet or opposing neil gorsuch for supreme court. guest: or going full bore against betsy devos. someone who in a normal republican administration would be worth taking a big political fight with? it she is a close ally of jeb bush. someone who was introduced by joe lieberman at her hearing. vulnerabilities, had a bad committee hearing. but if you think that education policy is going to be the driving force in 2020? if you think that the trump abnormality in his views is going to be the big fight, picking a fight over betsy devos, who is a school reform are supported by mainstream republicans, that's not where you want to spend your political capital. host: we are t

executive and legislative branches for this state of affairs but now with a new administration and a new congress, we ves an opportunity to begin the repairs. to do that, we need a clear understanding of the state of our military and the immediate trends that challenge us. for that, we turn to the advice chiefs of each of our services and we ask that each of you provide this committee your best professional military judgment in answering the questions we pose. as was emphasized last week, the world situation is dangerous and complex. this is no time to exaggerate or to underplay the challenges before us. only by facing them squarely can we meet the obligations all of us have to the constitution, to the men and women who serve, and to the american public. i would now yield to the distinguished acting ranking member, the jat from tennessee for any comments he would like to make. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i would like to ask unanimous consent that the opening statement of the real ranking member mr. smith be inserted in the record. >> without objection. >> i think we all realize that few subjects are more im